Sony Vaio U1 Subnotebook

(October 2002) Transmeta Crusoe TM5800 867mhz, 256M ram, 20G hard drive, a sharp and bright 6.4" XGA TFT (1024x768) display, i.Link, USB, Ethernet, memory stick, pc card, 133mhz bus, ATI Mobility Radeon-M graphics, 2.5-4 hour battery life. But this machine is mostly about its amazingly small form factor:

• Just 1.80 pounds with the battery, and
• 7.3"W x 5.5"L x 1.2"H (1.8"H on the thick end with battery).

At this size and weight, it's not really a notebook, and not quite a subnotebook. It's more like a compromise between a PDA and a subnotebook, but runs a full-blown Windows XP operating system install, comes with standard PC interfaces and ports, has ample memory and hard drive, and has a nicer keyboard and screen than a PDA.

Impressions

This is quite simply the most enjoyable machine I've had to date. Despite its size and processor, I've found that the U1 is useful for all the tasks I do on my other (larger and 1 pound heavier) machine, the P3-based SRX77 subnotebook. The U1 is more than adequate for writing and reading books, playing MP3s and DVDs, email and web access, photo and video albums, maintaining web sites, and so on--especially when traveling. For what I do, it seems just as fast as my 800mhz P3 machine. (I'm inclined to believe that a 2ghz P4 is wild overkill for most of what we do with computers, despite chipmaker marketing.) Naturally, my U1 runs Python for general programming tasks, and projecting demos during training sessions. Ordered by import from Japan through a company called Dynamism, at $1899. They sell items not yet available in the US; their U1 page currently lives here. Transmeta makes processors optimized for mobile machines. See also, Sony Japan; a new model, the U3, is due out in late '02 with a slight speed boost (933mhz, about 7%), a higher ram maximum (512M), and all black (see the black photo below). Their U1 page lives here, while it lasts. I opted for this machine over a C1, because it is smaller, and has a standard XGA screen resolution for presentations; the C1's screen is wide, but narrow.

My prior laptops: here, here, and here; my current PDA: here.

[Update 10/03] My new Zaurus Linux-based PDA.

[Update 12/27/02] Someone wrote to ask about differences in the ways I use the U1 laptop and CLIE NX70V handheld, and suggested I post the reply for others who may be curious about roles: here it is. One machine doesn't quite do it all (yet).

Photos found on the web (Sony)

Photos I snapped myself: click to expand

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